The attack began late on Tuesday afternoon when a group of Taliban suicide bombers armed with rocket-propelled grenades, small arms and hand grenades broke through a main entrance of the airport, said General Abdul Razaq Sherzai, the Afghan air force commander in Kandahar province.
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The attackers took positions in three locations — a school, a servant quarters and the bazaar — between the civil terminal and the 205 Atal Military Corps headquarters, engaging security forces.
Thirty-seven people were killed when Taliban insurgents wearing military uniforms stormed Kandahar airport, triggering pitched gun battles in a lengthy siege as President Ashraf Ghani Wednesday sought to revive peace talks at a regional conference. Back in October, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif also claimed that Pakistan has eliminated all members of the Uighur militant group the ETIM from its territory.
“We very much hope that Pakistan can play a very influential role and very important role in the peace and reconciliation process”, he told a news conference.
The Taliban suspended peace talks in July after news of the death of group leader Mullah Omar was confirmed, leading to a bitter power struggle within the group’s ranks. Its deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken attended yesterday’s conference and said: “There is no time frame (for talks to restart), but there is a sense of determination to try to move forward and get the right people around on the same table”.
In parts of his message, Nabil was apparently criticizing President Ghani for his remarks in Islamabad today, saying “At least 1,000 litres blood of our innocent people spilled which was similar to the red carpet where we did a cat walk”.
Reiterating their support for Afghanistan’s unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, Pakistan, China and United States have affirmed full support to the democratically elected National Unity Government of Afghanistan. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif personally welcomed Ghani at the airport in a red-carpet reception with a guard of honor and 21 gun salute, with the leaders scheduled to hold bilateral talks later in the day.
Afghan officials accuse Pakistan’s military of secretly helping the Taliban, charges Islamabad denies. The Heart of Asia – Istanbul Process was established in 2011 as an initiative by Afghanistan and Turkey to foster regional cooperation and long-term peace in Afghanistan.
“The entire world is waiting and rooting for a change”. “Let the talks resume, we will see how we proceed”, he said. It was recaptured by Afghan forces backed by coalition aircraft.
“The large cross-border motion of refugees constitutes a safety danger”, Sharif stated.
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The attack underscored the ability of the Islamist insurgency to undertake high-profile attacks at will. Taliban attacks have intensified and expanded in Afghanistan this year in the absence of direct support from global combat troops who pulled out from the country last year.
